The summit will take place in Riga and apart from the EU member states, six other countries will be represented, namely Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.

The Polish Foreign Minister, Grzegorz Schetyna, commented “This will also be the first step in the direction of their EU membership. It seems to me that the Riga summit should satisfy expectations and show the good will of Europe on this issue.”

Meanwhile his Romanian counterpart, Bogdan Aurescu, pointed to the precedent of Moldova which gained visa-free access to the EU last year, thanks to the Eastern Partnership’s efforts. The decision means that Moldavians who possess biometric passports can travel visa-free throughout the EU for short-stays.

“It has been a year since the elimination of visas for citizens of Moldova. 500,000 of them already have biometric passports and can travel to EU countries. This is very good for the citizens of Moldova, who can travel freely, but also good for bringing the country closer to the EU,” Romanian Foreign Minister Aurescu commented. (sl/rg)